Shirin Polow - Persian Sweet Rice

شیرین پلو  Shirin polow - Persian sweet rice is a traditional special-occasion rice dish which is usually served with chicken and goes well with turkey too. This delicious sweet rice is perfect for Thanksgiving dinner. Thanksgiving is all about getting together with the people you love and care about. Spending time together, telling stories, laughing, giving thanks, and of course eating delicious food and mouth-watering sweets. Like many Iranians, I do add my own Persian cooking touches to the Thanksgiving menu. I feel the meal is not complete if there's no Persian-style rice to go with it!

Shirin Polow - Persian Sweet Rice

Ingredients:

 Serves 4-6

2 cups long-grain white basmati rice
2 cups carrots, peeled and shredded
1 cup orange skin, slivered
1 cup slivered almonds
1/3 cup sugar (may be adjusted to your liking)
1/2 teaspoon powdered saffron dissolved in 3 tablespoons of hot water
Dash of cinnamon
Salt
Oil

 Method:

1. Rinse 3 large oranges and, using a vegetable peeler, peel the skin and cut into thin stripes. Rinse well under cold water. Place the slivered orange peels into a small pot, add a cup of cold water, boil for 3-5 minutes over medium-high heat, drain, and repeat the process two more times. 
2. Heat 3 tablespoons of oil in a large skillet over medium heat, add the shredded carrots and saute for about 5 minutes, add the slivered almonds, then add the sliced orange peels. Continue sauteing for an additional 5 minutes.
3. Add the sugar, a dash of cinnamon, pour 1/4 cup of water, gently stir, cover and cook over low heat for 7 minutes. Set aside.
4. In a large bowl, wash the rice with cool water a few times. Soak the rice in 8 cups of water, add 4 tablespoons of salt, and set aside for at least a couple of hours.
5. In a large non-stick pot, bring 3 quarts of water to a rapid boil over medium-high heat. Drain the rice and pour it into the boiling water. Bring the water back to a boil for about 7 minutes or until the grains are long, soft on the outside, and hard in the center. Drain the rice in a colander and rinse the par-boiled rice with cool water.
6. Wash the pot and return to heat, add 4 tablespoons of oil, with a large spatula, place 1/3 of the rice into the pot, add a layer of the carrot mixture, building it into a pyramid shape away from the sides of the pot. In order to release the steam, make 4-5 holes in the rice with the bottom of the spatula.
7. Cook the rice for about 7-10 minutes over medium-high heat or until rice is steaming. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of oil, 2 tablespoons of water, and the liquid saffron over the rice, lower the heat, cover, and steam the rice for 50 minutes.

Transfer the rice to a serving plate, garnish, and serve warm.

Enjoy!

Chicken Soup & Other Persian Home Remedies

With flu season upon us, I thought this would be the perfect time to share a few of the home remedies we grew up with for treating the common cold. In our culture, traditional herbal solutions have been passed down for centuries, each one offering a little comfort for sniffing, coughing, sore throats, and overall winter fatigue. I'm sure every culture has its own time-tested approaches, but today I'll share the ones we rely on most often in our home, always in addition to visiting the doctor and taking any prescribed medication.

 سوپ مرغ Chicken soup is perhaps the most universal cold remedy of all. Whether or not it's medically proven, there's no question that a bowl of steaming soup, made with love, warms the chest, soothes the throat, and nourishes the soul. 

 

 

Here are a few simple things we turn to when cold symptoms settle in:

1- Drink چای (chai, tea) or hot water with fresh squeezed lime/lemon, and sweetened with nabat or a spoonful of honey. 

2- Eat cooked (شلغم shalgham, turnip). Simmer 4-5 small turnips in 2 cups of water for about 20 minutes on medium-low heat. Don't overcook. Serve warm, add a pinch of salt if you find the flavor too mild.

3- Eat plenty of fruits and vegetables. Citrus fruits, grapefruits, oranges, and tangerines are a great source of vitamin C. In Iran, we have لیموشیرین (limoo shirin, sweet lemon), commonly eaten during a cold. You can sometimes find it in Persian grocery stores when in season.

4- Gargle with salted water to help soothe a sore throat. 

5- Drink lots of fluids. 

6-Make a simple chicken soup.

7- Rest well and sleep.

Soup-e Morgh - Simple Chicken Soup

A soothing, classic home remedy

Ingredients

4-6 servings

- 4-6 pieces of chicken (drumsticks, thighs, or wings)
-1 large onion, thinly sliced
-2 medium-sized tomatoes, peeled and diced
-4 medium carrots, diced

-4 celery stalks, diced
-1 handful parsley, chopped
-2 garlic cloves, diced
-1 teaspoon salt
-1/4 teaspoon pepper
-1/2 teaspoon turmeric
-Juice of 2 limes/lemons

-2 tablespoons olive oil

-Water to cover

Method:

1. In a large pot, heat up olive oil on medium-high heat and add onions. Sauté until translucent. Add turmeric, carrots, tomatoes, garlic, and celery, stir well. Place the chicken and season it with salt and pepper. Add enough water to cover by 2 inches.
2. Bring to a boil, over medium heat, then reduce to low and simmer for 1 hour. 
3. Adjust the seasoning as needed, and add more water if necessary. 
4. Add the lime juice and parsley and stir. Cook for another 10 minutes, and serve warm. There's a special kind of magic when a mother ladles steaming soup into a bowl and says, "Eat this. It'll make you feel better." I think that comfort alone has healing power. 

Stay warm, stay nourished, and keep healthy!

Sobhaneh - Persian Breakfast

صبحانه Breakfast has been called the greatest meal of the day. I couldn't agree more. It only takes a little time early in the morning out of our busy schedule to boil some water to brew a fresh cup of loose-leaf tea or make an aromatic, delicious cup of coffee. Warm up some flatbread (lavash, barbari, sangag, or pita) if it's available where you are. Serve feta cheese and/or butter, walnuts, fruit jams, or honey. Many like to serve fruits of the season and sliced small cucumbers, and firm tomatoes. This is a typical Iranian breakfast. Where the tea is hot, and the bread is warm, cheese (paneer) is tasty and of good quality. In those 10-15 minutes sitting at a table, sipping tea, enjoying the company of loved ones, counting your blessings, and gathering the strength to get up and start a day refreshed and ready to go. The above photo is a picture of my favorite kind of breakfast. I should mention that there are many other morning meals that I'll be sharing with you later on.

Enjoy!

Seer Torshi - Pickled Garlic

The other day, I stopped at a new grocery store on my way home. I had no plans to make سیرترشی garlic pickles, but I was excited to see these clean garlic bulbs without the dusty stems at the end. That meant I didn't have to wash them and risk getting the moisture in between the cloves. I only needed to remove the loose and dried outer layers as much as possible. I think a jar of pickled garlic makes a delicious display on the kitchen counter, especially if you use white vinegar so that you see the inside of the jar. But of course, we need to put these pickles away in a cool and dark place to ferment. Don't you love the flavor of garlic in most dishes such as yogurt, chicken, fish, lamb, beef, and vegetables?

My mother not only used garlic generously in cooking to spice up the food, but she also used it for its medicinal purposes to cure our coughs and colds. She would also have her daily dose of garlic to maintain her blood pressure and keep it low. I use a few cloves in recipes that call for garlic and always have my seer torshi jars. I usually make a jar with peeled cloves and also a jar with separated but unpeeled cloves. The older garlic pickles get the better they taste. Garlic becomes soft and sweet, and they melt in your mouth like jam.

Seer Torshi - Pickled Garlic

Ingredients:

8 fresh garlic bulbs, clean the roots, and remove the papery skin 

3 cups white wine vinegar or white vinegar

2 tablespoons salt

1 tablespoon honey or grape molasses

Method:

1. Place garlic into a completely clean and dry glass jar. 
2. Add salt and honey to the vinegar in a separate glass bowl. Mix well. 
3. Pour the vinegar mixture over the garlic in the canning jar, leaving 1-inch headspace, and tightly seal the jar with a lid. 
4. Place in a cool and dark place. 
5. They'll be ready to serve after a couple of years so that they can age, and the seven-year seer torshi is known for its delicious taste.

Enjoy seer torshi with your favorite food. I like to serve it along with abgoosht, lamb shanks, and lima beans rice (shevid baghali polow), and eggplant dishes.

Enjoy!